This R13 application is submitted to request partial support for The 12th International Symposium on Basement Membranes (ISBM), to be held at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 15-18, 2005. The International Symposia on Basement Membranes is a series of biennial events that rotate between sites in Europe, Japan and the United States. The Principal Investigator of this application, Dr. Jouni Uitto, was elected as the President of this Symposium in the prior meeting held in Japan, 2003. He is assisted in organizing this meeting by Dr. Mon-Li Chu, Vice President of the Symposium, and by the Local Organizing Committee representing Departments of Dermatology and Cutaneous Biology; Pathology, Anatomy and Cell Biology; Medicine/Rheumatology and Hematology; Orthopaedic Research; and Genetics; as well as the Office of the Dean of Jefferson Medical College. The Local Organizing Committee is assisted by a distinguished International Advisory Board. The principal objective of this Symposium is to provide an international forum for the cadre of premier scientists working in the broad fields of basement membrane biology and pathology, with relevance to human diseases. The 12th ISBM will consist of four thematic sessions revolving around the following topics: 1. Assembly and Structure-Function Relationships of Basement Membranes: 2. Basement Membrane Development and Stem Cell Biology; 3. Genetic Approaches to the Biological Role of Basement Membranes: and 4. Molecular Basis of Diseases of Basement Membrane. These sessions feature a total of 12 invited speakers who have been selected on the basis of their scientific excellence and recognized ability to communicate with a broad audience. In addition, 18 short platform presentations, given primarily by young and new investigators to the field, will be selected from abstracts submitted for poster presentation. The audience, expected to consist of 200-250 participants, comprises a broad spectrum of established biochemists, structural and molecular biologists, physician-scientists and clinicians. In addition, we expect a significant number of young and new investigators in the field - students, postdoctoral fellows, and residents - to participate. We believe that the current meeting is extremely timely, and it is expected to prove its usefulness in bringing interdisciplinary approaches for the research teams of the future, as well as to enhance the translation of basic sciences to the clinical practice. In that sense, the meeting will meet some of the goals of the National Institutes of Health Roadmap Initiative.